1980s. Mixed-Race girl from the wrong side of the tracks meets wealthy boy born into a family as close to royalty as one can be in America. Elise is loud, uneducated and floating along. Jamey is privileged, observant and has had his entire future planned since before he was born.

When these two young lovers come together, the world around them won't stand for it. This is a Romeo and Juliet tale with a twist.

"It's gigantic, swollen, pounding on a molecular level like a billion hearts, the way a space does when the people in it realize their power."

This is not the type of story I typically wouldn't be able to resist on the shelves of a book shop, or browsing Amazon. I admit that I'm not the target demographic this book was intended for. I found the writing to be quite good, Libaire has a way with words that would occasionally thrust me directly into the story.

"Love, he thinks, is accidental, fleeting--he can't possibly deserve it."

I found the polarity of Elise, seeking a home she hasn't ever found and Jamey, who doesn't know what love means to be interesting. Something visceral is bringing them together but in stories like these, the center never holds.

"He's never had to be moral. He falls into one of those crevices: a certain kid in a certain society in a certain generation where no decisions remain because his ancestors have finished every single thing within reach."

The build up was slow, glacially slow. The end was an explosion that never came. I knew from about halfway in that the ending wouldn't be satisfying, but I kept reading. Their was something promising in the plot but the execution left much to be desired.

2 stars.

I see elements of strong writing and story telling. Lyrical at times. But 75% in I lost momentum though I finished. I think it was when it became choppy and so many characters weaving through. I am grateful for the free copy but I struggled to get through.

This is an addictive debut novel: a love story that is raw, gritty and sexually explicit. Jamey Hyde and Elise Perez were neighbors in New Haven, CT. They meet and fall in lust love but, their backgrounds couldn't be more different. It's 1986, Jamey is white and a junior at Yale. His family is extremely wealthy. Elise is bi-racial and never even graduated from high school. She grew up in a Bridgeport, CT housing project. Somewhat blinded by the chemistry, Jamey decides to leave Yale in the hopes of building a life with Elise. The couple moves to Manhattan to begin their life together. Without giving away too much I'll just say that all does not go smoothly for this young couple. White Fur is a terrific character driven novel with flawed characters who struggle to keep it together despite prejudices over gender, race and class differences. I was impressed with the writing and thought that the character development and back stories were very well done. The romp around New York City in the mid 1980s made for some great reading. (5/5
stars)http://bibliophilebythesea.blogspot.com/2017/04/books-read-week-in-review-we-4222017.html

This story is an absolute train wreck. You know you should look away, but you can't.

To be fair, the author definitely has a gift with words. They write in such a way that you can absolutely see what they are trying to convey. However, so much of this story doesn't make any sort of sense that even the brilliant descriptions can't save it. I would have LOVED this story if there wasn't the constant reference to these people "being different inside" and "putting on a façade" and any of the million other ways the author tries to say they aren't really connected to humanity. The characters were just weird.

Being from two different worlds? I can get behind that. Complex characters? Totally. Wealthy family immediately being suspicious (or in some cases downright hostile)? Bring it on. Consistently talking about how they "see" but do not see. How they consistently feel a disconnect between themselves and everyone else? That could have been done better.

And the ending? Does not tie up any loose ends. We still don't know what ultimately happens. And that was probably the biggest disappointment.

All things considered, I do believe there are people who will enjoy this novel, and I would read more from this author.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

I loved that this book starts off with a sneak peek of what is happening near the end. It made it all the more intriguing and I couldn't wait to find out how and why Jamey and Elise had gotten to that point. If the ceiling had fell on my head I doubt I would have been able to stop reading.

This was not your usual love story. It was gritty, raw, almost painful at times. Jamey Hyde was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, where as Elise Perez grew up where spoons were something people used to cook their drugs on before shooting up. To say they were opposites is an understatement. Jamey has had everything handed to him and Elise has had nothing. When they first meet Jamey is embarrassed for her, and later when he starts dating her (if you could call hiding away for hours at a time having sex "dating") he is embarrassed by her. Yet somehow they are just meant to be.

DNF so will not be rating or reviewing. Thank you for the opportunity to read this title.

This story is to be read and talked about. A great reminder on how hard it is to really own your life, how love can affect one, how ugly humans can be. I am enchanted by the story and looking forward to its release to re-read and pass on the book to my friends.

Set in the late 80's this reminded me of Pretty in Pink smashed up with Less Than Zero. Jamey was the well to do guy who fell for a girl who from the wrong side of the tracks. Despite how they felt about each other, his family does what they can to force their heir apparent away from the girl he loves.

Else and Jamey, for whatever reason, clicked. They may not have had anything in common, but they brought each other out of their comfort zones. Class, education, even skin color didn't matter to them. Even when it seemed like everyone was against them, even themselves, they still gravitated back to each other.

What I didn't get was why Jamey had to have his "break". Why was that they only way for he and Else to run away from his family and their control? They believed so much in each other (which was evident in the last chapter of the book) that I think they could have made the break without "breaking" Jamey.

This was a quick read that is a little different. The author doesn't sugar coat the differences between the characters and uses those differences in a way to pull them together. I didn't like the last few chapters of the book, but the overall story was a good one.

Elegant. The first third of this story was delicious. This author's way of combining words and phrases is, quite seriously, the best I've ever read. It's a joy to read, a pleasure, a wordgasm. Words and phrases lovingly combined into a head-spinning, lyrical masterpiece. Pure 5 golden star perfection. Then, the rest of the story.

After the first third and before the half way point, I closed this book with no intention of finishing. How many ways can the most talented writer describe sunlight reflected off of windows, the smell of the air on a spring day or a winter day, the people on the street and what they're wearing and doing before even the most enchanted reader gets bored and just wants the story to move forward? The story bogged down. Way, way down...down into never-finishing-the-book down.

I finished the book. I read every...single...page. And it became torture. Even the most talented author, and Jardine Libaire has to be considered extraordinary, must let the story flow. This author will be one I will search for in the future, hoping that her next effort will balance story and skill more evenly. She deserves to be read, and I hope you do. Every reader should experience the pure pleasure of reading such an amazing writer, while hoping the next story will be better.

Enjoy!

2shay

Why can't we all just get along? A young and loving couple from different sides of the track try to find peace together and make their own world. A great book! It's a winner..

Thanks to NetGalley for offering me a free ARC.

This was the second book in only a few weeks’ time that I was offered free to read in exchange for my honest review.

What can I say, but I should have learned from the one right before (Once In Lourdes) that sometimes free means it is probably being offered for a reason.

So, the story of Elise Perez and Jamie Hyde set in late late 1980s billed as a modern day Romeo and Juliet really couldn’t have been anything further from that.

I admit I was intrigued when I first read this description, but as many shared in their own Goodreads’ review I had trouble getting into this story.

Why?

Because I couldn’t picture a rich and upcoming young guy falling hard for girl from the wrong side of the tracks and giving it all up for her.

Maybe not being a 20 something in the prime of my youth has something to do with it. But still, when I was that age I am pretty sure that this wouldn’t have happened to me or anyone else I knew.

That said, that part of the book actually wasn’t the most unbelievable as the last part actually dealt with the fallout from an evening out with friends, where a drug induced psychosis actually becomes a central theme for latter portion of this novel.

Honestly, I just couldn’t relate at all and even found myself lacking any feelings one way or the other for both of the main characters by the end.

I really couldn't get into this book.And believe me,I tried. Maybe because I happen to be Puerto Rican and had a hard time with the way Elise is portrayed. I couldn't finish.

Well...this book was definitely different than what I normally read, but not in a bad way. I really liked how the book took place in the 80's! That was very interesting for me. I also enjoyed Jardines writing, it was refreshingly different!

My problem with this book is it ended, as all stories must, although in real life the story just goes on and on until someone dies. Well contrived and well written tale of poor girl meets rich guy and somehow it all works out, or seemingly so. Rich guy wants to give it all up for his squeeze but in his world that just doesn’t happen as in it is “not allowed” by the family. Not only is she not as well off but there is an ethnicity issue. So, family trots out the big guns and rich boy tells them to get lost. Next family ploy is to use more emphatic means, however poor girl does not mean girl is without smarts. As the story progresses it is hard not to become involved in and cheering on the seemingly mismatched pair, and all seems to go smooth and then as mentioned the story ends. To find out how it ends, read the book. Five big bright stars for this one.

Such powerful, raw emotion throughout this entire book. Elise knows that she will love Jayme from the moment she meets him. He comes from a world of privilege while Elise's life has been filled with anything but privilege and opportunity. The two of them find a love that fixes everything they didn't know was broken and find a way to fight for it while the world continually tries to tear them apart. I was wowed by this book from the very start!

Points for a super cool cover design! White Fur by Jardine Libaire captured my attention right away with this one line description:

A stunning star-crossed love story set against the glitz and grit of 1980s New York City

1980’s + New York City = a book I will want to read.

Synopsis:

When Elise Perez meets Jamey Hyde on a desolate winter afternoon, fate implodes, and neither of their lives will ever be the same. Although they are next-door neighbors in New Haven, they come from different worlds. Elise grew up in a housing project without a father and didn’t graduate from high school; Jamey is a junior at Yale, heir to a private investment bank fortune and beholden to high family expectations. Nevertheless, the attraction is instant, and what starts out as sexual obsession turns into something greater, stranger, and impossible to ignore.

The unlikely couple moves to Manhattan in hopes of forging an adult life together, but Jamey’s family intervenes in desperation, and the consequences of staying together are suddenly severe. And when a night out with old friends takes a shocking turn, Jamey and Elise find themselves fighting not just for their love, but also for their lives.

This novel masterfully dances through conflict and resolution, expertly avoiding areas where cliche could weigh it down. The pendulum often swayed back and forth between me rooting for Jamey, or Elise. As a couple, was I rooting for or against them? My feelings changed almost as frequently as the pages did. I am someone who lives on the CT coastline, and I know Newport, New Haven, Bridgeport, and NYC, and the author has nailed the details of each location. There is a lot of sex in this novel, and it tethers these characters together, in ways both sweet and vicious. Thank you Net Galley...I can't wait for publication to see if others will be as moved as I have been.

I hate giving a book such a low score but I couldn't finish this as the bad language was just excessive and misplaced. I realise I sound like a nun when I say that, but it was too overly graphic which was a shame as the story was a good one - girl and boy from different sides of the track from different backgrounds. I felt this was meant for a much younger and edgier audience in their twenties?

Jamey is a trust fund Yale student surrounded by people with an extreme sense of entitlement and Elise is a high school dropout from all over Connecticut as long as it's the wrong side of the tracks. So begins this love story of two parts. The first part deals in the two getting to know and fall for one another in a passionate and exuberant way as only youth can understand. The second part deals in the friction of class and the struggle to continue to grow together. There are a few twists that I will not go into (better you learn them on your own), but ultimately I really enjoyed the beginning but was a bit let down by the directions the book went. I've already heard comparisons to a modern re-telling of Romeo and Juliet, and while I disagree with this assessment I did recognize the influence. Thank you to the publisher for inviting me to read this early through netgalley.

This is a gritty story of a raw desperate love, a clash of worlds colliding, of power, race, privilege, when the dirt poor, school dropout, mixed race and street smart Elise meets Jamey in New Haven, Connecticut where the two coincidentally happen to be neighbours. Jamey is a Yale man, whose path in life is laid out, determined by his wealth conscious, emotionally distant parents, and by virtue of his class. The eponymous white fur is a jacket Elise has managed to acquire and wears constantly. This is no sweet romantic affair, it is a full blooded lusty, high octane brutal passion, a twentieth century Romeo and Juliet with drugs, guns, cruelty, violence and mental health issues set in the brash lights and culture of New York.

Elise is not happy to be hostage to the demanding nature of her emotional need for Jamey. Jamey has been conscious of an emptiness in his life, and in Elise he believes he has found the answer to the questions in his life and love. He has a position in New York and asks Elise to move there with him, thinking their relationship will be more sustainable there. His desperate family are willing to do whatever it takes to break them up but Jamey doesn't care, all he wants is Elise. It is a fascinating look at the stultifying, rigid, and limiting world of white privilege, a straitjacket from cradle to grave. Elise's family is more flexible and accepting, their edgy world is more geared to survival in sharp contrast to the playground of Jamey's world. Is it possible for their love to survive with all that stands against it? Loved the 1980s vibe of New York City and culture. Highly recommended. Thanks to Crown Publishing for an ARC.